HUD Archives: News Releases

HUD No. 03-102
Brian Sullivan
(202) 708-0685 x 7527

For
Release
Friday
October 03, 2003

HUD AWARDS $29.4 MILLION IN GRANTS TO HELP LOCAL COMMUNITIES REDEVELOP BROWNFIELDS AND TO CREATE THOUSANDS OF JOBS Cities will also seek $117 million in loan guarantees to further stimulate
revitalization

WASHINGTON - An abandoned factory, a vacant industrial area and an old oil
field hardly seem suitable for commercial, residential or cultural development
but soon these, and 19 other "brownfields" will be restored to thriving
parts in their communities because of $29.4 million in grants announced today
by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Mel Martinez.

The funding
is provided through HUD's Brownfields
Economic Development Initiative(BEDI) to 21 communities and is expected to stimulate more than 5,000 jobs.
In addition, HUD will also guarantee more than $117 million in loans committed
by the communities to help restore these areas (see attached list).

"These
grants will enable HUD to work with local communities to revitalize these areas,"
said Martinez. "We will develop creative solutions and breathe new life
into these areas, cleaning them up and restoring them into vital areas where
people can live and work."

The funding
and the guaranteed-loan assistance announced today help local governments to
redevelop abandoned, idle or underutilized facilities where redevelopment is
complicated by environmental contamination. By combining grants with a low-interest
guaranteed-loan program, HUD helps communities to convert abandoned or underutilized
sites into useful commercial and industrial developments.

Often
perceived as unproductive eyesores in their communities, these brownfields hold
tremendous potential as sites for community revitalization. Many of these brownfield
sites are strategically located in or around key areas and were, in many cases,
the reasons why the city or town was developed in the first place. HUD's experience
is that with some environmental cleanup, abandoned factories or other industrial
sites can be converted into new centers of community renewal.

Since 1998,
HUD has made an investment of $153 million in BEDI grants and $727 million in
companion Section 108-guaranteed-loans in 120 communities. These funds have
leveraged another $1.1 billion in other public and private funds.

HUD is
the nation's housing agency committed to increasing homeownership, particularly
among minorities, creating affordable housing opportunities for low-income Americans,
supporting the homeless, elderly, people with disabilities and people living
with AIDS. The Department also promotes economic and community development as
well as enforces the nation's fair housing laws.